The Victoria Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society is part of a national society dedicated to bringing information about astronomy to the general public.

Membership

Membership in the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada is open to everyone with an interest in astronomy, and does not require any knowledge of astronomy. We enjoy helping beginners!

Joining the Victoria Centre of the Canada-wide RASC is easy – Join Now

Primary Contacts

  • President – Dr. Chris Gainor, FRASC – email
  • Membership Coordinator – Chris Purse – email

Victoria Centre Directors

  • President – Dr. Chris Gainor, FRASC – email
    • Overall responsibility for Victoria Centre, its members and Council & public relations
  • First Vice President – Dan Posey – email
    • Monthly meeting & speakers, major events
  • Second Vice President – Kirsten Pedersen – email
    • Special projects, observing events, volunteers
  • Treasurer – Doug Hardy – email
    • Financial recording and reporting, taxes and government filings
  • Secretary – Oliver Robinow – email
    • Minutes, official records, correspondence
  • Past President – Randy Enkin- email
    • Business continuity, special projects, nominating committee
  • Directors at Large – Assist in the operation of the Centre
    • David Lee – email
    • Myles Morrison
    • Jeff Pivnick – email
    • Lauri Roche – email
    • Alex Schmid

Victoria Centre Officers

  • Librarian – Alex Schmid – email
    • Lending library – periodicals, books, CDs, DVDs & other media in our library
  • Membership Coordinator – Chris Purse – email
    • Enquiries from the public & new members, membership roster, email lists
  • National Representatives – Nathan Hellner-Mestelman & Bill Weir
    • National RASC representation and liaison
  • Observing Chair – Jim Stilburn- email
    • Vested with authority by the National Observing Committee to review and approve observing certificate applications
  • Progressive Lighting Policies – Dave Robinson
    • Liaison and education about effective use of lighting
  • Schools Programs – Lauri Roche – email
    • School visit and education program
  • SkyNews Editor – Randy Enkin – email
    • Editor of SkyNews, our monthly newsletter
  • Telescope Loans – Sid Sidhu – email
    • Lending Centre-owned telescopes to members
  • Victoria Centre Observatory – Reg Dunkley – email
    • Victoria Centre Observatory operations
  • Webmaster – Joe Carr – email
    • Website content and server operation

Advisors and Liaisons

  • James Di Francesco (Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, National Research Council)
  • Jim Hesser
  • John McDonald
  • Jim Nemec (Camosun College)
  • Lauri Roche (Friends of the DAO)
  • Alex Schmid (University of Victoria)
  • Bill Weir (Pearson College)

RASC Roots

In 1868 a small group of amateur astronomers formed the Toronto Astronomy Club. In 1903, King Edward VII gave his permission for “Royal” to be included in the title and the Society became the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. There are now around 5,000 members in 30 Centres, found in most major Canadian cities.

The Victoria Centre was formed in 1914 and quickly developed into one of the largest centres in the country. There are currently over 250 members. Most are amateurs with some being professionals from the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, the University of Victoria, and Camosun College. Professional astronomers frequently appear as guest speakers at RASC monthly meetings.

Victoria Centre members have a long history of offering public observing sessions to residents of Victoria.